The National tribune., 1887-07-28
SUNDAY MEDITATION.

Aug. Z. st. Matt, 4:13-25.
Zone reading these notes should first carefully
study the paragraph from the Holy Scriptures as
indicated above.l
SUBJECT: JESUS IN GALILEE CALLS Hrs FIRST
Four APOSTLES.
Last week we were in the wilderness of Ju-
dea studying the account of our Savior's tempta-
tion. Keeping to st. Matthew's Gospel, we
miss some important facts which followed dur
ing the interval between the temptation and
our lesson. The time passed over is about
eight months. For the facts thus omitted we
depend mainly on st. Johns Gospel. Directly
after the temptations of Christ, he returned to
the Jordan. There he met for the first with
Andrew, Peter, Philip and Nathaniel. These
accompanied Christ TO Cana and witnessed the
first miracle. Then it seems they returned to
their homes while Jesus went tc Capernaum.
In March, A. ID. 26, he went to the passover,
meeting NicOdemus. In October, st. John
Baptist was imprisoned. In January. A. d. 81,
occurred the facts of our lesson. We see the
interview of Jesus with Andrew and Peter was
not his first meeting with them. He formed
their acquaintance about eight months before.
Verse II gives us an idea of the employment
of our Savior after his temptation. He simply
continued the work of st. John Baptist, preach
ing repentance and basing the duty on the
ground the Kingdom Of Heaven was at hand.
Subjects of the Kingdom of Christ must be
righteous. Hence, conditional to entrance is
reformation. All sorts of sin must be stopped.
The object of all preaching is repentance in
the sense of cessation from evil. 1t had been
prOphecied that Christ would preach. Qsa,
6I:I.)
The lesson calls us to the Sea of Galilee,
named also the Lake Of Gennesaret. (St. Lu,
SID
The time came when Christ was to enter
fully on his work. Since baptism, to wit, for
about two-thirds of year, he has labored
without any Apostle. He sees the call for as
sistance. Then he wanted to drill body Of
men who should carry on the work after his
death. These should be under training be-
forehand. So Christ went to the Sea of Cali
lee, in vicinity of Capernaum. for the purpose
Of formally calling into the service of the
new Kingdom, which he was setting up, his
first four Apostles. He called two braces Of
brothers. First he met with Peter and An
drew, sons of iona. They were in the act Of
fishing. Christ issued his call constituting the
two from that time fishers Of men instead of
fish. A little further on he went up to James
and John, sons of Zebedee, and also appointed
them 10 catch men. That was an apt figure Of
speech by which ministers Of the Gospel may
be styled fishermen, and hence Christians
(caught) fishes. These four were hardy men,
economical, patient-qualities nurtured as well
as demanded by their former vocation.
We notice the simple call" Follow Me"
st. Mark Q:17) reads, Come ye after Me-"
The meaning of these exhOrtatiOns, or rather
commands, is, Become my Disciples. Begin to
learn of me, through me. In the cases OF the
immediate Disciples the command was also
Obeyed literally, the persons accompanying
Christ in all his travels.
There is something admirable in the ready
way in which all four responded to the order of
Christ. There was no complaint, no request
for delay, no pickering as to terms, no squeam-
ishness as to work, no demand for explanation.
There was full trust, complete Ignorance OF
self.
Notice what they left: 1. Their nets. 2.
Their parents. 3. Their wonted vocation. A.
Their comparatively easy, safe way of living.
5. Their ships. 1t is no pleasant thing to break
up all ones business and social relations. They
did all this heartily ON the spot.
BY brethren" V. IS, we should read broth
ers says, in V. 10, instead Of saith :" consti-
tute, appoint, for "make," in V. 10; various
for divers" in V. 2i who for (which" twice ir
v. 2i Omit "from" before "thence," in "
81, and in st. Luke, 3: 10.
The Sea of Galilee abounded in fishes. Nets
were used. The ships referred to were mere row.
boats Josephus states there were go boats on
the Sea of Galilee. Each would hold five per-
sons.
The second "all" in V. 81 is hyperbolic.
Probably the first "all " in that verse is also
quite hyperbOlic.
Our Savior's various trips were peregrinations
He had no fine equipage, no chariot. lie event all
over Palestine afoot.
OF Peter and Andrew we do not know which
was the eldest. 1t is thought James was the
older one of Zebedee's sons. They were all
| partners in their old vocation.
The familiarity Of Christ with Andrew and
Peter, as seen in V. 10, was at least partly due
| 10 the fact they had met before and hence
| were known to each other.
We notice the following parallelisms between
literal and ecclesiastic fishing. /. The sea is
the world 2. The fish are men, women and
children not yet Christians. 3. The bait is
| happiness with Heaven ultimately. 4. The
line is the the Holy Spirit connecting bait and
| fishermen. 5. The net is the Church. g. Men
can fish best at night. So the clergy succeed
best in times of darkness, sorrow and aftliction.
z. The fisherman needs patience. The minis,
ter must win souls. He must not be diseour-
aged if he catch but one at a time, and even
at quito extended intervals. s. There is cal
| in both yocations for the wisdom of the SER
| pent and the harmlessness of the dove.
Verses % % are fine comment on the words
of st. Peter in the assembly at Cesarea. Acts
| 10: 33) Indeed, Jesus went about doing good
The Apostles followed him literally in hi:
travels.
lie went about all Galilee. This region wa.
about 30 miles by % in area, having at leas
| 100000 inhabitants So we can explain il
part the statement (V. 25) that great multi
| tudes followed him. Here followed" means
| In general, literal following, though doubt
less very many also become religious follower
/ of Jesus.
The Jews had but one temple. That was a
/ Jerusalem, and was the only place where saeri
fees could be offered. On the other hand, syna
| gogues were numerous. There were several, G
o., at Damascus. (Acts, 9:2, 20.) We learr
| from Rabinical sources that in Christs tim,
there were about $50 synagogues in Jerusalem
alone. Synagogues came into use after the Cap
tivity. In these all ordinary worship could b
offered. Religious instructions were impaired
in them, based on the reading Of the Hol,
Scriptures as then known.
IL is said Christs fame spread throughout al
Syria. This was bounded on the north by tn
| Taurus range, on the south by Arabia, on tn
west by the Mediterranean and on the east b,
the Desert of Palmyra and the Euphrates. Gu
| Savior himself never went from Palestine saw
when he was carried by Joseph and Mary
| Egypt and when he was transfgured on MI
Hermon. But his fame spread into man
countries. Such general statements of Christ
many and diverse works as occur in verses q
"a, illustrate st. John, 81: 25. How the deed
and words of Jesus became so widely known W